Would-be mayoral candidate says Mike Bloomberg is too rich to beat

A Democratic congressman who backed away from the race to challenge Mayor Michael Bloomberg said Wednesday that the billionaire's wealth makes it impossible to have a fair fight.

Bloomberg, an independent serving his second term, has spent more than $18 million since January -- nearly double what he had spent by this point in his re-election bid four years ago.

Associated PressAnthony Weiner was once considered the Democratic front-runner.

Anthony Weiner, who represents parts of Brooklyn and Queens in the House, said he has so much work to do in Washington that he cannot devote the effort it would take to beat Bloomberg.

"I simply didn't think that I could wage the kind of campaign necessary in order to overcome the resources that the mayor had," Weiner said at a news conference outside his childhood home in Brooklyn.

Bloomberg said campaigns are about much more than money and defended his right to spend his own.

"If you have a good message, people are going to be responsive," Bloomberg said, "and if you have a bad message, if you've done a bad job or don't offer hope for the future, no amount of money is going to make a difference."

Weiner first announced his decision in a New York Times op-ed piece posted online late Tuesday. Several weeks ago, he hinted he would likely not run -- telling supporters he was rethinking his plans.

When the congressman first ran for mayor in 2005, the conditions were similar to this year: Bloomberg was the popular incumbent with virtually limitless cash and Weiner had to split his time between the campaign and Washington.

Associated PressMayor Michael Bloomberg is running for a third term.

But Weiner said Wednesday that the situation is different this year because of the important business before Congress. He cited the financial crisis as the main priority, and said he believes he can better serve the city by staying in Washington.

Once considered the frontrunner in the Democratic race, Weiner said he will back the nominee. City Comptroller William Thompson Jr. leads the field in both fundraising and public opinion polls.

Weiner had been preparing for this campaign for years. For most of that time, Bloomberg was not a threat because the city's term-limits law prohibited him from a third consecutive four-year term.

But last year, after the mayor abandoned his exploration of an independent presidential bid, he turned his attention to the term-limits law and ended up persuading City Council to change it so he could for mayor run again.

The move, which Bloomberg argued would give voters more choice, has ended up shrinking the field of contenders. In addition to Weiner, Republican businessman John Catsimatidis and Democratic Council Speaker Christine Quinn have also bowed out.